West Ham manager Alan Pardew admits he does not yet know how to get the best out of new signings Carlos Tevez and Javier Mascherano.
Pardew left the Argentina stars on the bench for the start of his side's 1-1 draw against Aston Villa at Upton Park on Sunday despite the clamour to see the new arrivals from Corinthians make their debuts.
Tevez finally made his first appearance after an hour but, one superb burst of skill and acceleration aside, the striker was kept comfortably under wraps by Villa's defence.
Mascherano however was denied any chance to make an immediate impact as he spent the entire match watching from the sidelines.
Pardew may leave the duo out again for Thursdays UEFA Cup tie against Palermo and conceded that, although his surprise signings are among the best young players in the world, it will take time to work out how to integrate them into his side.
He said: 'I honestly don't know how they will fit in and how they will evolve into the team yet. That's the same with all new players who come in, not just them.
'It was the same with Marlon Harewood and all the guys I've brought here. It takes time to get to learn what players do well and what it needs to work on.
'It wasn't a statement of intent to leave them both on the bench. It was a football decision. The guys who played at Liverpool in our last match had done a fantastic job.
'I'm relieved the circus is over. There was a bit of baggage that accompanied the team from midweek after the signings and I think we suffered a bit with that.
'Without a doubt it did affect us in the first half. We looked a bit sluggish and apprehensive and thats not what we are about.
'The new signings are the cream on the cake, but the cake has to taste nice in the first place.'
